Glencore in talks to sell further 9.9 percent stake in agriculture unit - sources

By Clara Denina and Sarah McFarlane

LONDON (Reuters) - Commodity trader and miner Glencore (GLEN.L) is in talks to sell a further 9.9 percent stake in its agricultural unit, negotiating with bidders that missed out on the 40 percent sold to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), two sources with knowledge of the matter said.

Glencore declined to comment.

Bidders include a different Canadian pension fund, state-backed Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Co (SALIC) and Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, the sources said.

SALIC and Qatar's sovereign wealth fund were not immediately available to comment.

Last month, CPPIB agreed to buy a 40 percent stake in the unit for $2.5 billion (1.7 billion pounds), placing the equity value of the business at $6.25 billion. Including inventories and debt, the unit is valued at closer to $10 billion.

The 9.9 percent stake is valued at around $625 million.

Glencore had been aiming to close the deals at the same time in the second half of 2016, the sources said.

"Negotiations are ongoing ... people who lost out are still trying to get on board, but Glencore will struggle to get more money for it," one said.

The London-listed company announced its intention to sell a minority stake in its agricultural unit in September, after shareholder pressure to see it cut debt prompted a slew of measures including asset sales, reducing capital expenditure, suspending dividend payments and raising $2.5 billion of new equity capital.

The group said it aimed to cut net debt to between $17 billion and $18 billion by the end of 2016, down from a peak of $30 billion last year.

One sticking point to the deal is whether the smaller stake holder will have voting rights, as CPPIB does, the sources said.

The agriculture business allows Glencore to trade grains, oilseeds, rice, sugar and cotton.

It generated core earnings of $524 million in 2015 and had gross assets of more than $10 billion.

(Editing by Veronica Brown and Mark Potter)